The Benefits of Friendship
by flowerofsin
Summary: Pairing: Komamura/Tousen. Happens pre-Soul Society arc. The pair's rushed arrival to a meeting sparks banter among the captains & vice captains. No spoilers.


Title: The Benefits of Friendship

Author: Eumenides (flowerofsin)

Rating: PG

Pairing: Komamura/Tousen

Warnings: nothing really

Word Count: 865

Summary: Happens pre-Soul Society arc. The pair's rushed arrival to a meeting sparks banter among the captains & vice captains. No spoilers.

The pair raced across the lawn and down the corridor toward the meeting area. There was an issue that Captain Yamamoto wanted to address to both the captains and vice captains, so being late would be frowned upon. Tousen held the scarf he usually tied around his neck in his hand. His braids hung freely about his shoulders, bouncing at the quick steps he took. He hadn't had time to find his hair tie, as it had been misplaced during the course of the pleasant distraction that he'd engaged in earlier. Tousen's glasses had been another casualty of their tryst. Not even Komamura's sharp eyes could find them in the darkened room in which they'd been. Barely having time to get to the meeting without being too late, it wasn't an option for Kaname to retrieve his extra pair from his quarters.

"Sorry," Komamura said as he matched Tousen's steps. "That wasn't the best of ideas before a meeting." He felt mildly ashamed at his behavior, especially since Kaname had initially advised against it before Sajin had convinced him otherwise.

Tousen smiled faintly, glancing in his direction. "It's not like it's solely your fault. Besides we're not late yet."

Turning the corner, they halted noisily in front of the meeting room. Pushing open the double doors, Komamura was pleased to see that the meeting hadn't begun since Yamamoto wasn't present yet.

At the two captains' hasty entrance, Matsumoto, who had been talking with Gin off to one side of the room, turned toward them."What's this? You two certainly arrived in a hurry."

"We didn't want to be late," Kaname answered simply.

Rangiku smirked. "I guess that's why you're out of breath, or is it something else?" She raised an eyebrow as she took in their appearance. "You look like you got dressed in a hurry."

"I don't know what you mean," Tousen answered innocently.

Matsumoto sauntered toward them, a twinkle in her eye. Her appraising gaze fell upon Tousen. "You've got that look about you, if you don't mind me saying so."

"What are you trying to get at?" he asked, his brow furrowing slightly. He couldn't see the smirk on Gin's face as he hovered not so far behind her.

"You know," she said, a bemused expression on her face as she said in a low voice, but loud enough for most of the other shinigami to hear, "The look of someone who just had incredible sex."

"M-Matsumoto!" Hisagi exclaimed from nearby. "Don't be so rude to my captain."

Matsumoto huffed, turning away from Tousen's shocked face to gaze over her shoulder at Shuuhei. "A grown man shouldn't be trying to play innocent about things like this. Besides he's always so serious, I want to find out something juicy about him."She turned back to the pair with an eager look.

"I don't know, Rangiku," Gin said peering over her shoulder, amused by Kaname's look of discomfort. "I don't think Tousen even knows what 'incredible sex' is."

"It's nothing like that," Tousen explained, his brows furrowing. He chose to ignore Gin's slight. "We're just friends." He only felt mildly guilty about lying. Tousen wasn't interested in becoming a source of gossip in Seireitei.

Rangiku chuckled as she watched him take a seat next to Shuuhei. "I didn't say that you weren't, just one with benefits."

"Benefits?" Tousen echoed.

"That's what they call it these days," Matsumoto said as she walked toward the table. "It's a friend that goes that extra mile for you, if you know what I mean," giving him a sly glance. She moved toward the seated Hitsugaya, draping herself over his shoulders. The young captain sighed at the press of her soft breasts against him. "Aw, I miss having something like that."

Gin chuckled, moving to take his seat. "Friends with benefits are the best kind," he agreed.

"What's that, Gin?" Aizen asked as he stepped through the doorway, Hinamori trailing behind him.

"Oh, we were talking about how great it is to have friends who'll do some... interesting things for you." His usual sly grin edged toward becoming a leer.

"Can we please be a little more dignified?" Byakuya asked, irritated about the subject of their banter. "Yamamoto-sama has arrived."

The elder shinigami made his way toward the group, shaking his head slightly. He pretended as though he hadn't heard some of their previous conversation.

The arrival of their leader caused the captains and vice captains who had still been milling around the room to take their seats. As Aizen walked around the table, he passed Komamura and Iba, pausing behind Tousen's chair on his way to his own. Briefly, he lifted the shinigami's braids, letting them slide through his fingers.

"Your hair looks nice like this, Kaname," Sousuke remarked. "You should wear it down more often."

"I-I'll consider it," Tousen replied, mild embarrassment at the compliment not the only emotion he felt.

Matsumoto gazed across the table at Komamura. While his expression was hidden by the helmet he wore, the way he twitched as he tried to prevent his hand from balling up into a fist told her everything she had wanted to know.

End


End file.
